A federal food fight over the white potato

Millions of women with infants and children in America need food. The federal program, Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (known as WIC), has provided nourishing food (milk, eggs and bread) to those in need for more than four decades. For the past five years, WIC included fruits and vegetables, but not white potatoes.

The nonpartisan Institute of Medicine believes the WIC population does not need more potatoes. Nutritionists state white potatoes are less nourishing than other vegetables. The American Pediatric Association and the American Medical Association support WIC's position.

However, the National Potato Council, a potato business lobby, disagrees and wants to provide more potatoes to the WIC population. U.S. Rep. Charlie Dent signed supporting letters for the potato business, the only member of the Pennsylvania congressional delegation to do so. Why would Rep. Dent ignore all the science and support the potato lobby?

If we want to make a dent in the WIC nutrition problem, we need to rely on science and not a business lobby. Anything else is small potatoes.